I used to be for marriage being strictly between a male and female as male and females can only procreate; but I have evolved and have come to accept the positives outweigh the negatives in the fact that gays being able to marry may entice them to be in more committed and loyal relationships in reducing diseases and making them more emotionally happy. Even then, I was for civil unions but now I have changed my personal views on it for these reasons but I can understand an atheist such as pumpin holding that view.

And he called men, males. So? Male and Female are just more formal and species neutral.

"The female monkey does most of the child care while the male monkey spends more time fighting". BUT "The woman monkey does most of the child care while the man monkey spends more time fighting." doesn't sound right, does it?

if they're going to have civil unions(which i think you can do in most places) i think you might as well let people marry, but i'm not for it, and i do think it's a bit hypocritical. like i think for the reasons people give for supporting gay marriage, the same people should support polygamy. if you don't support both equally, you're a hypocrite. consensual adults, blah blah blah.

What reason would you be against it as an atheist? I cited why I used to be against it (due to the fact that it would deem marriage worthless in the long run and due to adoption issues) but I have changed my views accordingly (I still think that heterosexuals should be preferred over homosexuals in adoption priority lists if both families are equally stable). But what reasons would you be against civil unions especially?? If two people have been together and are committed to each other shouldn't they receive at least the same property rights, inheritance rights, hospital visitation rights, tax rights, etc etc...?

so then what? who cannot marry? i don't think anyone under 18 should be married either, i have a definition of what a marriage is to me, i don't support anything that doesn't fit that. that is all. i don't have an issue with gay people, i don't care who or what you fuck as long as it's an adult who wants you to do it with them. instead of everyone getting married how about we just get rid of marriage?

But being gay is not a choice for the vast majority of cases. It is something people are biologically predisposed with. And especially with civil unions, why shouldn't they at least have equal rights under the law?